The Musical Deception: The Opera Ghost of Hogwarts
by sodonewithlife
Summary: It is Harry Potter's Seventh Year at Hogwarts. It is also the year long-kept secrets, known only by those closest to Harry, will be unveiled. This year, Hogwarts is also putting on a production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera with help from two instructors from a famous theater and dance troupe. What connection does this have with Harry? Rated M cause I'm paranoid
1. Overture

_AN* I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING RECOGNIZABLE FROM PHANTOM OF THE OPERA OR HARRY POTTER, THEY BELONG TO THE WONDERFUL JK ROWLING AND ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER_

 _Set in Harry's 7th year. Voldemort has been defeated in the Department of Mysteries. He and Bellatrix were killed by Harry after Sirius almost falls into the Veil, only saved by Remus sending a summoning spell at him. Peter Pettigrew was captured along with the other Death Eaters at the Ministry and Sirius was cleared. Harry has been living with him and Remus since a month after his fifth year._

 _Harry has been singing and dancing since he was young, allowed by the Dursleys because he gave them a good reputation. Just before starting Hogwarts, two of his instructors who are magical told him about a mundane/magical theater and dance troupe that was known all over the world and allowed for members to work on Broadway or the West End. Harry joins right before his first year, and throughout his teen years, he quickly made a name for himself in the troupe and started playing leads by the time he was fifteen, using Evan Summers as a pseudonym, also managing to earn roles in musicals on the West End._

* * *

KING'S CROSS

A motorbike roared and made it to the edge of the sidewalk. The two riders took off their helmets and the one sitting behind the other slung his backpack over his shoulder. The two embraced and exchanged words of farewell, unaware of the stares of a certain group of redheads and a brunette. The motorbike started up again, roaring off into the distance.

The second man looked up, revealing bright green eyes. A look of amusement crossed his face as he took in the faces of his surrogate family.

"Harry! Oh my goodness, how much you've changed!" Harry Potter found himself engulfed in Molly Weasley's motherly embrace. As the group walked towards platform 9 3/4, Harry could see many people staring at him, some with their mouths open- namely, his friends Ron and Hermione.

Harry smiled. "Thanks, Mrs. Weasley, it's been a good summer for me, living with Remus and Sirius." Now that was mostly the truth, as Harry had always looked like he did now, it was just hidden under a glamour charm.

To everyone except Remus, Dumbledore, and Sirius, Harry looked like a thin, short, and pale bespectacled student with too much on his shoulders. He was always slouched with not much confidence around him. Now, he was clearly muscled but not in a bulky way. He is around 5'11" and has a wiry but strong frame. He no longer uses his glasses and his hair was pulled back in a short ponytail. Harry's clothing also changed, when before he was wearing ill-fitting rags. Now, his body is accentuated by a black button-up shirt with rolled up sleeves and blue jeans with dark brown dragon-hide boots.

They made it to the platform just as the whistle blew, and there was a mad rush to the train. Harry got with his friends, most of whom were still trying to shake themselves out of their shock over his new appearance. Together, they waved their goodbyes and settled in for the ride.

* * *

It is a new year at Hogwarts. Students are animatedly chatting to their friends while enjoying the start of term feast. Harry Potter is in front of his two closest friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. While he isn't taking an active part in their chatter, he is content listening to the couple's banter, since it allows him time to think.

A hush falls over the student body as the Headmaster stands up to give out the announcements. Most of them are the same, so Harry tunes them out, as does much of the older student body. However, he perks up when he hears the headmaster say:

"-lucky to welcome the instructors from the famous London Theater Troupe to the halls of Hogwarts this year for a musical that we, the staff, have voted to be showcased this year, _The Phantom of the Opera_!"

The students break out into hushed whispers, excitement clear on many faces. Harry, however, is feeling some trepidation regarding the decision to have such inexperienced students put on such a difficult and high maintenance show.

"Yes, yes, we are very excited about this wonderful opportunity to have these talented instructors here to help us with rehearsal and direction. Audition sign-ups will be posted on the common room notice boards and are in two weeks here in the Great Hall. The cast lists will come out three days afterward. Now, I believe it is time for bed. Chop chop!"

The students burst into chatter as they leave the Great Hall towards the dorms. Harry, however, sends his friends ahead and stays back. He catches the Headmaster's eye, and they both nod. Harry heads towards Dumbledore's office since he has some things to do.

* * *

"Alright, why was I not informed that Victoria and Atwell are coming here this year?" Harry demands good-naturedly.

"Mr. and Mrs. Matthews volunteered to come here to help with _Phantom_ as soon as they heard that you were still here. They wanted to surprise you, and while they are not here yet, they want to congratulate you on your spectacular work in _Les Miserables_. You really were spectacular." Dumbledore replied.

"I see you dropped that horrific glamour." He adds. Harry had been using a glamour since his first year as part of a guise to fool his enemies. While everyone else thinks he is a sickly pale and has a shorter, scrawny figure, he, in reality, has well-toned muscles and is close to 6 foot in height and has a good coloring on his skin, and his eyes are a vibrant green, brighter than the eyes on his glamour. Dumbledore knows this since they came up with this idea together soon after Harry met him after getting his Hogwarts letter and joining the London Theater Troupe when Dumbledore was visiting one of his friends that worked there. He also hid his true personality to create a safer and false image for the rest of the Wizarding World but displayed his true personality to his close friends and family as well as to the trustworthy teachers in private. Harry was truly quite bright and cunning but displayed to the others what they wanted to see.

"I think I saw at least 30 girls checking me out, who will have to be disappointed since I rarely swing that way. Oh, also when Ron and Hermione saw me, I thought they had been petrified for five straight minutes. Am I really that different? I also decided to shed any personas this year, I'm too tired of acting which is ironic considering my hobby and job." Harry responded, digging in his pockets for his portkey. Harry had been given a Portkey that allowed him to attend rehearsals and classes at the studios while using a golem to take his place as to not raise suspicions inside the castle. In his fifth and sixth year, he was using lie of going to classes with Dumbledore as a cover for his rehearsals.

"Well, you and I did decide to make your glamour self extremely different from your true self. Good luck at rehearsals today, I seem to recall your next musical is also _The Phantom of the Opera_? I seemed to have forgotten you have the role of the Opera Ghost and that you will be staying overnight at the dorms at the rehearsal space overnight for a full day of rehearsals tomorrow? I certainly don't remember saying that your golem will be ready as soon as you leave my office." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled in pride and amusement.

Harry lightly blushed and disappeared in a flash of light to the rehearsal studios.


	2. Hannibal Rehearsal

TIME SKIP: TWO DAYS BEFORE AUDITIONS

"So Harry, I was thinking of auditioning for Christine," Hermione says, "since she's popular and witty. What do you think?"

 _Popular and witty? Not in this musical..._ "Yeah, you'd be great in that role," Harry replies, not looking up from a letter he is writing. _I heard Ginny is auditioning for Christine, I think she'd be better in the role._ Hermione huffs and turns to Ron. "Hey Ron, what are you going to audition for?" She asks.

"Hmmm... I was thinking of auditioning for the Raoul." Ron slowly says. Harry nearly chokes on nothing. _Ron, the Vicomte de Chagny? Not likely!_ "Oi Ron, you should audition for the auction master. He doesn't sing at all! You'd be great at it!" Harry throws at Ron, then quickly ducking as a book was just chucked at him by Ron.

"Come on Harry, what do you know about this musical anyway?" Ron retorts. Harry just laughs and runs off towards the boys' dorms and gets ready for bed. He pulls out a mirror, after making sure no one can see or hear him and says "Sirius Black."

The surface of the mirror ripples and a man appears.

"OI MOONY, IT'S HARRY! GET YOUR ARSE OVER HERE-Hey pup, what's up? How have rehearsals for _Phantom_ been?"

Behind Sirius, Remus Lupin appears. Harry and the other two start up a conversation about rehearsals and shows for _Phantom._

"Rehearsals have been a pain in the arse. Seriously, the director is insane, but I love it anyway. It's been quite exhausting. I needed to use the Room of Requirement for relaxing more often, I'm getting worried that my cover is going to be blown. At least I have the Map with me at all times. Performances have been amazing, I haven't messed up yet, thankfully. The new swings and cast members are amazing, my alternate has been great." Harry tells them.

"Well, please don't overwork yourself. You need rest, too, you know." Remus says. "Yeah pup, you need rest just like the rest of us mortals here." Sirius jokes.

"I know Moony, I really want to be ready for the 25th Anniversary performance. Andrew Lloyd Webber is going to be there, and I cannot mess up!" Harry exclaims with a slightly hysterical edge to his voice. (pretend that it is Sepetmber 2011 in this universe)

Remus and Sirius exchanged a glance.

"Does Mister Padfoot know what I think?"

"Does Mister Moony think the same thing?"

"I agree with Mister Moony, it is time for an intervention. You will send an owl to the director."

"May Mister Outsider inquire to what Misters Moony and Padfoot are plotting? Should Mister Outsider be worried?" Harry breaks in, knowing that this can continue for forever.

"Well, Moony and I have decided to take you on a weekend out to London for relaxation. Moony is sending an email to your director and a Patronus to Dumbledore as we speak. And this is non-negotiable." Sirius replies, adding in the last part as he sees Harry about to protest."

"What is my director says no?" Harry is grasping at straws for excuses to not go.

"Your director already replied yes, he says you've been working too hard. In fact, he said that you are banned from the theater for this weekend and that you are on vocal rest for the next five days." Remus came back, looking smug.

Harry slumps and gives up. He knows he's not going to get anywhere with the excuses. They talk for a bit longer and then hung up. He leans against the headboard of his bed thinking about the production Hogwarts is putting on, his thoughts drifting from the ideal cast to when Sirius and Remus found out about his outside job and hobby.

 _FLASHBACK_

Remus and Sirius had a friend that was an informant for the Order and also had many friends part of Harry's theater troupe. After Harry's fifth year (in 2010), their friend invited them to see a production of Les Miserables that a member of the troupe was doing on the West End in, which included the best seats in the theater and backstage passes. When they got to their seats with the program and looked through it, they saw a person with an uncannily similar appearance to Harry. They didn't think of it until the actor went onstage for his role (Marius Pontmercy), and they realized that their voice was also very similar to Harry's. They told each other their suspicions, and right after curtain call (and after composing themselves since they had cried their eyes out), an usher came to their box and took them backstage. As soon as they got backstage, they were told that one of the actors wanted some private time with them, making the pair slightly nervous. They met the other actors first and chatted a bit, and then came the time to meet the last actor, the one who requested private time with them. Remus and Sirius were pointed to a dressing room. Feeling some trepidation, they both discreetly took out their wands (even though the war was over, but there were still Death Eaters at large) and knocked.

"Come in!" A familiar voice called out. They looked at each other, wondering the same thing. _That sounds like Harry... could it be._ They open the door to see a familiar mop of raven black hair facing away from them on their phone with their legs on the table. In the mirror in the corner, they see a young man, no TEEN, that looks suspiciously like the Harry they know. The young man looks up into the mirror from his phone, and a smile appears on his face. He turns around and Remus and Sirius's mouths drop open in shock.

"Close your mouths, even though there are no flies in here, I'm sure something will find its way into your mouths. So, you surprised to see me?" The actor says with amusement clear in his tone.

Remus is the first to recover from his shock. "H-Harry? Is that you? What the hell are you doing here and why do you look so different?" Sirius, who recovered a few seconds after Remus, nodded his head. He wanted to know the same thing. Harry nods, "Yeah it's me-"

"BLOODY HELL YOU WERE AMAZING OUT THERE PUP!" Sirius yells.

Harry lightly blushes and thanks him. He then sighs and motions for them to sit down, conjuring more comfortable seats and casting privacy spells at the same time. Harry ignores the looks of shock on his uncles' faces at the clear use of wandless magic.

"It's time for me to tell you two a long kept secret of mine, one that only Dumbledore knows out of the people in the Order and at Hogwarts." Harry takes a deep breath and launches into his explanation.

"Ever since I was three years old, I have been singing and dancing. The Dursleys forced me into lessons to give them a good reputation in the neighborhood. I ended up loving it and began to prepare to go to a prestigious performing arts school in London. I had been competing in child singing competitions since I was 9 and had made a name for myself. Then I got my Hogwarts letter, and soon after, I got an invitation to join the London Theater Troupe, a mundane/magical theater and dance troupe. They had an excellent program for people aged 11-20 that allowed for outside projects while training with them and participating in productions, produced many famous actors, some who was part of at least two professional productions by the time they were 16. My first professional production was in _A Chorus Line_ where I played the part of Greg Gardner. It gained me positive recognition. I was able to get emancipated in the mundane world before joining the cast. I live in a studio apartment that is close to the studios that the troupe uses. Midway through my fifth year, I auditioned for Les Miserables and got cast, so here I am."

By the end of his explanation, Remus and Sirius were in shock, and after a few minutes of silence, Remus recovered. "Wait, that doesn't explain your sudden change of appearance. I know you can't have changed this much in less than a month."

Harry facepalmed. "I knew there was something I was forgetting. Ok, so a week after I joined the troupe and had gotten used to the routines there, I met Dumbledore. Apparently, he was visiting the studio because his friend who was a prominent member of the troupe mentioned to him that there was a new magical member that was a prodigy in singing and dancing, especially ballet and had a great mind. What Dumbledore did not know was that I was, apparently, the person his friend was referring to. We chatted for a bit and I quickly realized that I would have enemies in the Wizarding World and they would expect me to act and look a certain way. I had read somewhere in a book that one should hide their abilities so the enemy would underestimate you. I pointed this out the Dumbledore and that I had already gotten pretty good at acting, so I should act and look a certain way in the public. He gave me the idea of glamours to make me look small and unhealthy so the enemy would underestimate me. That eventually proved to work in my favor this past school year in the Ministry." Harry said. the last part added in a deadpan.

"Any questions?"

Again, Remus and Sirius were in shock. They already knew the true personality of Harry, but to see it put into play to this extent was shocking. Suddenly, they both burst out of their shock and asking a million questions to Harry.

 _FLASHBACK END_

Harry lay down and rolled over to grab something from in his bedside table and hung it up just inside the curtains surrounding his bed.

 _Oh Ron, you have no idea how much about The Phantom of the Opera I know._ Harry thought, closing eyes and falling into a comfortable sleep.

A white Phantom mask stared back at Harry.


End file.
